Impact
History Impact’s story begins at the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA. It was there that his mother, a radiology nurse was accidentally exposed to several medical isotopes. Unfortunately, she would later discover that when this occured she was, in fact, pregnant. Fearing the potential effects on her unborn child, she began her maternity leave. Born healthy and happy, he felt no different from anyone else as he grew up. That changed the night he fell down the basement stairs, the result of taking one step too many as he tried to quickly finish the last of his chores. Lying bruised and sniffling at the foot of the staircase, the young teenager reached upwards, fumbling for the steel railing that his mother had so often advised him to use as the fall had given him a headache unlike any he’d ever felt before. The jolts of pain he received each time he opened his eyes more than a sliver was more than enough to convince him of that fact. Finally gripping the familiar, cool steel, he began to shakily pull himself to his feet, unaware of how long he’d lain there on the basement floor. Making his way upstairs, he decided that the chores could wait. Rising early the next morning, he noted that there were no bruises on his body and when he went downstairs, slowly, he found an almost perfect hand-sized indention forcefully imprinted on the rail. Overcome with far too many questions, none of which he could answer, he ran outside and continued running until he found himself at a nearby junkyard. Confused and out of breath, he leaned against a tall stack of tires heavily, undoing the delicately balanced column. Within seconds, he found himself buried beneath the dozens of solid rubber forms, ironically similar to an accident he’d been a part of as a child. Feeling panic start to grip him as he called for help, the small teen shoved upwards, focusing what little strength he felt he had. The response was immediate as he found himself not only free, but he’d launched some of the tires into other parts of the junkyard. Returning home, he once again found himself without apparent injury and more importantly, with something that made him special. Experimenting slowly throughout the years, Max was able to gain some measure of understanding about this ability of his, though it was something he kept hidden as best as he possibly, only using it sparingly when confronted with situations where it was near unavoidable. Typically, these were instances involving someone bigger pushing around someone smaller for no reason other than for their own enjoyment. Despite this, Max continued to carry himself as a kind, genuinely happy person and graduated from college with a degree in chemistry. The weekend following graduation delivered a painful reminder to Max that the entire world wasn’t as fortunate as he was. As gang violence spilled out into the streets, his best friend, Joshua’s life was claimed, an innocent victim caught in a drive by shooting. Though he’d been pondering some way to put his ‘gift’ to use, this was the catalyst that finally pushed him into action. The effect was akin to that of a single beam of light streaming through the darkness as a semi-costumed hero began breaking up drug deals, weapons trafficking, and any kind of crime he could get his hands on. Co-operating with the police, neighboring gangs began to shrink quickly, though it wasn’t long before they struck back as well. Super-powered battles ensued as criminals and powered mercenaries were brought in to remove Impact, but despite each challenge thrown in his way, he continued to persevere. That is, until the announcement of a large comet’s descent into Earth-space. For the first time since he’d embraced his gift, Impact felt helpless. It was a problem too large for him to even attempt to help with. Leaving it to the more apt, and able heroes, he sat atop the highest building in the city, watching the sky, half praying that the world’s heroes would be successful and half pondering hanging up his costume. With his eyes skyward, he was able to see the smallest collision, which he assumed were the heroes putting a stop to the planetary threat. Giving a sigh of relief, he flopped onto the building, closing his eyes with a smile. Moments later, with the sounds of panic and hysteria ringing in his ears, he was on his feet, staring upwards as a large chunk of the comet, being tailed by several speeding heroes, came plummeting towards the city. Stealing a glance at the quickly scattering people, he did the only thing there was to do. He leapt into the air and charged right at the comet. There were a few lingering thoughts in his mind about the possible outcomes for what he was doing, but he completely ignored them. If it meant that all the people he’d protected, along with his family and remaining friends would live, it was worth it. Within seconds, he’d built up enough speed and slammed hard into the fiery space rock, lighting up the evening sky. As debris and dust rained down, so did Impact’s body, crashing through part of a building before being caught by another hero, amidst cheering from people below. Once he awoke, he was greeted by several smiling faces before making his way back to his apartment, where he collapsed and slept for an entire day. When he finally woke up, the city was still swept up in hero fever, with people cheering as he flew about on patrol. It was while stopping a getaway car that he discovered the after-effects of the comet. Holding out his hand to meet the car, instead a blast of radiation shot forward, melting the front end of the car, badly burning the getaway driver and his passenger. After freeing them from the seared remnants of the car, Impact decided whatever had granted him this ability, it was one that he couldn’t use lightly, especially with normal people around. Steadily resuming his heroing, despite the self imposed restriction, Impact continued to make significant headway in his battle with gangs, superpowered or not. Unfortunately, he found himself breaking up a meeting between several gang leaders when the aptly named ‘Power Wave’ struck, turning what was meant to be an easy enter and arrest into a super brawl that stretched across half the city before Impact, along with aid from a few new heroes, was able to finally take the leaders into custody. After investigating the increasing superhuman activity in the country, Impact felt drawn to Metropolis and met with several other heroes in his community, leaving the city in their hands. As for his alter ego, he spoke with his mother and family, citing a youthful desire to travel and see the sights as his reason for moving, allowing him to tie up most of the loose ends in his life before beginning his trek to the big city with even bigger heroes. Crash Course - Absorption: Surrounding Impact's body is a passive 'absorptive field' which allows him to absorb damage caused by physical attacks and convert it into strength. The amount of strength gained is based on the amount of force and power behind the blow. The harder/more powerful the attack, the more strength Impact receives. The passive 'absorptive field' around his body persists even while he is sleeping or unconscious. - Plasma Generation: Impact possesses the ability to create, manipulate, and channel plasma, though the limits of this ability have yet to manifest as he feels there are few places to safely practice such a potentially dangerous ability. Largely, he’s utilized this ability in the form of fiery blasts from his hands or concentrated beams from his eyes. - Superhuman Strength: Impact possesses a degree of superhuman strength. At it's base he is able to lift and throw approximately ten tons. His strength increases in conjunction with his absorptive abilities. As of yet, a maximum strength has yet to be reached. - Superhuman Durability: Due to the constant elevated level of heat generated by and within his body, Impact's skin is hardened and very difficult to pierce. This, combined with absorptive field around his body, affords him a moderate degree of invulnerability to both physical and fire-based attacks. - Flight: Impact is able to take to the skies, seemingly at will, and is able to stop, hover, and change direction in mid-air. Currently, this is not an ability that he has mastered and he continues to practice it when possible. - Regeneration: Due to the changes his body has undergone, Impact heals from sustained injuries at roughly three times that of a normal human being. Meltdowns - Subzero Temperatures: Given that his body temperature remains higher than normal and he has the ability to emit blasts of superheated plasma, Impact is highly susceptible to extreme and concentrated cold. Personality and Traits - Impact was raised to be a kind, caring, and genuine person. It’s those same traits which not only shaped his persona in and out of costume, but also led to him becoming a hero. While he doesn’t consider himself a true ‘upfront’ type leader, he would have to agree that his words and actions carry a weight which seems to inspire others to try harder or to go further. It’s there, when helping others, that he finds the most joy. When pushed, he does have a temper which can flare up, but those occasions have become fewer and fewer now that he feels the responsibility of attempting to be a positive role model. Equipment - Coming Soon Wreckage "Gangland" As yet another life is claimed by rampant gang violence, a hometown hero makes his debut. His first job? Tackling the gang problem head on. "Target: Impact" Finding themselves on the losing end time and again, several crime bosses begin to bring in 'outside' help to deal with their hero problem. No questions asked, no matter the cost...Impact must be stopped. "Star Struck" While attending a local comic book convention, Impact finds himself caught up in a battle between three magical beings from another planet. Only with the aid of a visiting heroine is he able to turn the tide, but what does the revelation of more, potentially hostile aliens mean for Impact's future? "Cometfall" With the planet's heroes scrambling to prevent a continent sized meteor from smashing into the Earth, Impact ponders the meaning of being a hero and the worth of one person, while combating looting on the streets. But when a large piece bypasses the champions in orbit, Impact is forced to push beyond his limits in order to save those who matter most. As the dust settles and life returns to normal, he finds himself not only coping with startling changes but facing a threat more powerful than anything he's encountered before. "Return to Gangland" Still recovering from the devastating injuries he suffered in his last battle, Impact's aid is requested by the police as they're finally able to lure all of the crime bosses to one place. But when a strange 'power wave' washes over the planet, a simple arrest turns into a fight for survival pitting Impact against the criminals who hate him the most. Credits - Credits for the picture of Impact above 'Crash Course' goes to HS, original artwork by LastScionZ - Credits for the stats image go to Sovereign Cross - Credits for the bust shot go to Sovereign Cross, original artwork by Marvel Comics - Credits for Impact's logo go to Sovereign Cross